Egidio Romualdo Duni (or Egide Romuald Duny; 11 February 1708 – 11 June 1775) was an Italian

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

who studied in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

and worked in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, writing both Italian and French

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

Biography

Born in

Matera Matera (, ; Neapolitan language, Materano: ) is a city and the capital of the Province of Matera in the regions of Italy, region of Basilicata, in Southern Italy. With a history of continuous occupation dating back to the Palaeolithic (10th mi ...

, Duni was taught music by his father, Francesco Duni, and two sisters. At the age of nine, he was accepted at the ''Conservatorio di Santa Maria di Loreto'', near Naples. There he worked with

Giovanni Battista Pergolesi Giovanni Battista Draghi (; 4 January 1710 – 16 or 17 March 1736), usually referred to as Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (), was an Italian Baroque composer, violinist, and organist, leading exponent of the Baroque; he is considered one of the g ...

Giovanni Paisiello Giovanni Paisiello (or Paesiello; 9 May 1740 – 5 June 1816) was an Italian composer of the Classical era, and was the most popular opera composer of the late 1700s. His operatic style influenced Mozart and Rossini. Life Paisiello was born i ...

, and other masters of Italian opera. His first success was with the opera ''Nerone'' presented at the

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Carnival in 1735. Thereafter he was in London (''Demofoonte'', 1737), returning to Italy where he eventually became ''maestro di cappella'' in

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

in 1749. The latter part of his career was spent in France where he played a key role in the development of the '' comédie mêlée d'ariettes'' (an early form of

opéra comique ''Opéra comique'' (; plural: ''opéras comiques'') is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged from the popular ''opéras comiques en vaudevilles'' of the Théâtre de la foire, Fair Theatres of St Germain and S ...

), with such works as '' Le peintre amoureux de son modèle'' (Paris, 1757), '' La fée Urgèle'' (

Fontainebleau Fontainebleau ( , , ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Functional area (France), metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the Kilometre zero#France, centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a Subprefectures in Franc ...

, 1765), and '' L'école de la jeunesse'' (Paris, 1765). He died in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Works

Italian operas

*''Nerone'' (Rome, 1735) *''Adriano in Siria'' on a libretto by

Metastasio Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapassi (3 January 1698 – 12 April 1782), better known by his pseudonym of Pietro Metastasio (), was an Italian poet and librettist, considered the most important writer of ''opera seria'' libretti. Early life Met ...

(1735–1736) *''Giuseppe riconosciuto'' (1736) *''La tirannide debellata'' (1736) *''Demofoonte'' (London, 1737) *''Didone abbandonata'' (1739) *''Catone in Utica'' on a libretto by Metastasio (1740) *''Bajazet'' (1743) *''Artaserse'' (1744) *''Ipermestra'' (1748) *''Ciro riconosciuto'' (1748) *''L'Olimpiade'' (Parma, 1755) *''La buona figliuola'' (Parma, 1756) *''Alessandro nelle Indie'' on a libretto *''Adriano'' *''Demetrio''

French operas

*''Ninette à la cour'',

(1755) *''La chercheuse d'esprit'', Paris (1756) *'' Le peintre amoureux de son modèle'', Paris (1757) *''Le docteur Sangrado'', Saint Germain (1758) *''La fille mal gardée'', Paris (1758) *''La veuve indécise'', Paris (1759) *''L’isle de foux'', Paris (1760) *''Nina et Lindor'' (1761) *''Mazet'', Paris (1761) *''La bonne fille'', Paris (1762) *''Le retour au village'', Paris (1762) *''La plaidreuse et le procés'', Paris (1763) *''Le milicien'', Versailles (1763) *''Les deux chasseurs et la laitière'' (1763) *''Le rendez-vous'', Paris (1763) *'' L'école de la jeunesse'', Paris (1765) *'' La fée Urgèle'',

(1765) *''La clochette'', Paris (1766) *''Les moissonneurs'', Paris (1768) *''Les sabots'', Paris (1768) *''Themire'', Fontainebleau (1770)

Notes

References

*Warrack, John and West, Ewan (1992), ''The Oxford Dictionary of Opera'', 782 pages, *Paone, Gregorio Maria (2018), ''Egidio Romualdo Duni tra la produzione parmigiana e quella francese: 1749-1763'', 160 pages,

External links

Festival Duni

Sassi Web biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Duni, Egidio Romualdo 1708 births 1775 deaths People from Matera Italian Baroque composers Italian Classical-period composers Italian opera composers Italian male opera composers 18th-century Italian composers 18th-century Italian male musicians Musicians from the Kingdom of Naples